Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. BYRNE. Mr. Chairman, thank you for your work on this critical legislation.

The Resilient Federal Forest Act is key if the Forest Service is to have the flexibility it needs to actively manage our Nation's Federal timberland.

Now, I come from a State where forestry is critically important to our economy and our ecosystem. In fact, forestry is a $13 billion industry in Alabama. Thankfully, my State does not have a serious issue with wildfires due to our active forest management. That said, it does not mean that my area isn't impacted by the wildfire crisis.

The Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management are forced to spend so much money fighting wildfires that they have to take money away from other nonfire accounts

that, ironically, help prevent wildfires, like thinning and controlled burns.

Mr. Chairman, this bill just makes sense. By simplifying the environmental process requirements and reducing burdensome regulations that hinder active forest management on Federal timberland, we can help reduce wildfires and protect our Nation's forests.

So I want to thank the gentleman from Arkansas and others for their work on this bill and the continued leadership on behalf of our Nation's foresters.

Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues in this House to support this legislation, and I call on the Senate to act on this bill right away.

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